editorNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Jennifer Ludden is a correspondent on NPR's National Desk. She covers a range of stories on family life and social issues.In recent years, Ludden has reported on the changing economics of marriage, the changing role of dads, the impact of rising student debt loads, and the ethical challenges of modern reproductive technology.Ludden helped cover national security after the 9/11 attacks, then reported on the Bush administration's crackdown on illegal immigrants as well as Congressional efforts to pass a sweeping legalization. She traveled to the Philippines for a story on how an overburdened immigration bureaucracy keeps families separated for years, and to El Salvador to profile migrants who had been deported or turned back at the border.Prior to moving into her current assignment in 2002, Ludden spent six years as a foreign reporter for NPR covering the Middle East, Europe, and West and Central Africa. She followed the collapse of the decade-long Oslo peace process, shared in twoNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Jennifer LuddenSat, 19 Nov 2016 15:22:39 +0000Jennifer Luddenhttp://whqr.org
Jennifer LuddenThe most contentious presidential campaign and election in memory has many people dreading the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. Some have even canceled plans, unwilling to face family members on the other side of the country's hardening political divide.Not so for the McNeish family of Roanoke, Va., though they still differ mightily on what to expect from a President Trump over the next four years."I have no faith in him whatsoever," says Danny, 35, who works with a company that supplies and services restaurant equipment. He considered Trump's campaign a "joke" and cast a reluctant vote for Hillary Clinton.His father and stepmother both voted for Donald Trump. Phil McNeish, 57, is a machinist who calls himself a left-leaning independent; his wife, Julie, is a schoolteacher who was raised a Democrat. Before Trump, both voted for President Obama in 2008 and then Mitt Romney in 2012.Phil, who grew up in New Jersey, says he gets Trump's style. "He's brash, he's in your face," he says. "RoughThis Family Doesn't Agree On Trump — But They Await His Presidency Togetherhttp://whqr.org/post/family-doesnt-agree-trump-they-await-his-presidency-together
105199 as http://whqr.orgSat, 19 Nov 2016 13:25:00 +0000This Family Doesn't Agree On Trump — But They Await His Presidency TogetherJennifer LuddenAmy Hagstrom Miller of Whole Women's Health had been having a banner year. Her organization, based in Charlottesville, Va., operates several abortion clinics around the country and brought a legal challenge that led the Supreme Court to issue a landmark ruling this past summer.The court struck down abortion restrictions in Texas, setting a precedent that abortion rights groups believe could help turn back a wave of restrictions passed by legislatures across the country in recent years.But now that Donald Trump is the president-elect? "I'm devastated," Miller says. "I feel stunned. I'm numb."Trump's election could have a profound impact on access to abortion. He has said he'll nominate Supreme Court justices who would be likely to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that legalized the procedure. And he's set to take office with one opening on the court, since Republican senators have refused to consider President Obama's nominee to fill the vacancy created after Justice Antonin ScaliaAccess To Abortion Could Be Curtailed Under Trump Administrationhttp://whqr.org/post/trump-administration-could-lead-more-abortion-restrictions
104655 as http://whqr.orgThu, 10 Nov 2016 19:47:00 +0000Access To Abortion Could Be Curtailed Under Trump AdministrationJennifer LuddenIn Greensboro, N.C., Eyeisha Holt spends her days as a full-time child care worker at Head Start. But after a decade's work in early education she still earns only $11.50 an hour — barely enough, she says, to cover the basics as a single mom of two. So every weekday evening she heads to her second job, as a babysitter."Are you ready to go to bed?" she asks, as she oversees bath time for her 3-year-old daughter and another of her charges. For 25 hours a week, Holt cares for toddler twins, in addition to her daughter and teenage son."Some days I'm really strong," she says. "Some days it's like, 'OK, give me seven cups of coffee.' "Nationwide, average pay for child care workers like Holt is less than $10 an hour. Nearly half of these workers receive some kind of public assistance.Holt gets food stamps and her children are on Medicaid. "And I just feel like it's kind of messed up," she says. "You would think, being in a profession such as teaching, I should be making enough money where IPoverty Wages For U.S. Child Care Workers May Be Behind High Turnoverhttp://whqr.org/post/poverty-wages-us-child-care-workers-may-be-behind-high-turnover
104396 as http://whqr.orgMon, 07 Nov 2016 10:07:00 +0000Poverty Wages For U.S. Child Care Workers May Be Behind High TurnoverJennifer LuddenFact-Checking Trump's Statements On 'Partial-Birth' Abortionhttp://whqr.org/post/fact-checking-trumps-position-partial-birth-abortion
103354 as http://whqr.orgThu, 20 Oct 2016 12:49:00 +0000Fact-Checking Trump's Statements On 'Partial-Birth' AbortionJennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit SHAPIRO, HOST: We've been talking with working parents for our series Stretched. They face a lot of challenges, chief among them child care. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #1: There are wait lists for every reputable day care. UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #2: I left messages at 37 places. Three called me back. UNIDENTIFIED MAN #1: The cost for child care at some of the places we've seen is going to be almost as much as rent on an apartment. UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #3: We were paying about $1,600 a month just for her day care. UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #4: I mean there was the high school girl who said she would do it at $12 an hour, and (laughter) she's never held a baby before. SHAPIRO: Finding child care is frustrating. It's expensive, often in short supply and according to national studies, overwhelmingly low quality. We're hearing about it a lot this year with both presidential candidates talking up the issue. But it's been a problem forHow Politics Killed Universal Childcare In The 1970shttp://whqr.org/post/how-politics-killed-universal-childcare-1970s
103000 as http://whqr.orgThu, 13 Oct 2016 20:34:00 +0000How Politics Killed Universal Childcare In The 1970sJennifer LuddenIn the two-story breakfast room on the 25th floor of Hilton's Conrad Miami, Florance Eloi mans the omelet stand in front of a panoramic view of the sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean. The bubbly Miami native says, laughing, that guests routinely tell her, "Stop making the omelets, you need to turn around and look!"When Eloi, 31, found out she was pregnant late last year, she wondered how she would balance her job with a baby. She was lucky to have a few weeks of paid vacation, since about half of lower-wage workers do not.Still, it would be hard to come back to work so soon. And if she stayed home longer without a paycheck, Eloi says, she and her husband would have had to dip into savings.Then Eloi's manager told her some good news: By the time Eloi gave birth, a new policy would guarantee her 10 weeks of fully paid parental leave."It was right on time!" she says.Recent years have seen a boom in paid parental leave in parts of corporate America. Silicon Valley, especially, is in aFrom Cooks To Accountants: Hilton Extends Paid Parental Leave To Allhttp://whqr.org/post/hilton-paid-parental-leave-housekeepers-and-cooks-too
102888 as http://whqr.orgTue, 11 Oct 2016 22:37:00 +0000From Cooks To Accountants: Hilton Extends Paid Parental Leave To AllJennifer LuddenOn her first day back at work after giving birth, Tricia Olson drank copious amounts of coffee, stuffed tissues in her pocket, and tried not to cry. After all, her son Gus was just 3 weeks old.Olson, 32, works for a small towing company and U-Haul franchise in Rock Springs, Wyo., and she could not afford to be away from work any longer."The house bill's not going to pay itself," she says, her voice breaking in an audio diary she kept as part of a series on the challenges facing working parents airing on NPR's All Things Considered.Olson is one of just four employees she says are "like family," and like many U.S. workers, she has no paid leave at all: not for vacation, not if she gets sick, and certainly not for parental leave.Normally, she's the only one in the office to take calls. Her boss agreed to fill in for her for three weeks after the delivery, but she says "even just that ... makes me feel guilty."Olson is hardly alone in returning to work so early. But this is a uniquelyOn Your Mark, Give Birth, Go Back To Workhttp://whqr.org/post/your-mark-give-birth-go-back-work
102501 as http://whqr.orgTue, 04 Oct 2016 20:35:00 +0000On Your Mark, Give Birth, Go Back To WorkJennifer LuddenA powerful drug that's normally used to tranquilize elephants is being blamed for a record spike in drug overdoses in the Midwest. Officials in Ohio have declared a public health emergency, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration says communities everywhere should be on alert for carfentanil.The synthetic opioid is 100 times more potent than fentanyl, the prescription painkiller that led to the death earlier this year of the pop star Prince. Fentanyl itself can be up to 50 times more deadly than heroin.In the past few years, traffickers in illegal drugs increasingly have substituted fentanyl for heroin and other opioids. Now carfentanil is being sold on American streets, either mixed with heroin or pressed into pills that look like prescription drugs. Many users don't realize that they're buying carfentanil. And that has deadly consequences."Instead of having four or five overdoses in a day, you're having these 20, 30, 40, maybe even 50 overdoses in a day," says Tom Synan, whoAn Even Deadlier Opioid, Carfentanil, Is Hitting The Streets http://whqr.org/post/even-deadlier-opioid-carfentanil-hitting-streets
100669 as http://whqr.orgFri, 02 Sep 2016 09:07:00 +0000An Even Deadlier Opioid, Carfentanil, Is Hitting The Streets Jennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Georgetown University Takes Steps To Atone For Slave Ownershiphttp://whqr.org/post/georgetown-university-takes-steps-atone-slave-ownership
100654 as http://whqr.orgThu, 01 Sep 2016 20:28:00 +0000Georgetown University Takes Steps To Atone For Slave OwnershipJennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit NPR.Worried About A Bleak Future, Climate Change Activists Hesitant To Have Kids http://whqr.org/post/activists-consider-climate-impact-having-children
100411 as http://whqr.orgSun, 28 Aug 2016 21:10:00 +0000Worried About A Bleak Future, Climate Change Activists Hesitant To Have Kids Jennifer LuddenOrientation at Arkansas Tech University this year included a surprising topic for a Bible Belt state that pushes abstinence-only in high school. Every freshman was shown a newly produced video in which real students talk about the struggle of an unplanned pregnancy, and the challenge of staying in school as a parent."I lost a lot of friends," says one young woman in the video who had dreamed of becoming a surgeon. A young man says he "went from not having any responsibility to having a full-time responsibility," while another laments that Friday nights are no longer spent with friends but at home "watching Dora. A lot of Dora."The message is clear, and it will come up again throughout the year: in a college success course, in group chats in dorms, at a slew of events during Sexual Health Week.Why in college? Arkansas has the nation's highest rate of teen births, but most of them — here and nationally — are actually to young adults, 18 and 19 years old. Last year, the ArkansasA New Course At Arkansas Colleges: How To Not Get Pregnanthttp://whqr.org/post/new-course-arkansas-colleges-how-not-get-pregnant
100313 as http://whqr.orgFri, 26 Aug 2016 17:32:00 +0000A New Course At Arkansas Colleges: How To Not Get PregnantJennifer LuddenStanding before several dozen students in a college classroom, Travis Rieder tries to convince them not to have children. Or at least not too many.He's at James Madison University in southwest Virginia to talk about a "small-family ethic" — to question the assumptions of a society that sees having children as good, throws parties for expecting parents, and in which parents then pressure their kids to "give them grandchildren."Why question such assumptions? The prospect of climate catastrophe.For years, people have lamented how bad things might get "for our grandchildren," but Rieder tells the students that future isn't so far off anymore.He asks how old they will be in 2036, and, if they are thinking of having kids, how old their kids will be."Dangerous climate change is going to be happening by then," he says. "Very, very soon."Rieder wears a tweedy jacket and tennis shoes, and he limps because of a motorcycle accident. He's a philosopher with the Berman Institute of Bioethics atShould We Be Having Kids In The Age Of Climate Change? http://whqr.org/post/should-we-be-having-kids-age-climate-change
99813 as http://whqr.orgThu, 18 Aug 2016 15:09:00 +0000Should We Be Having Kids In The Age Of Climate Change? Jennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit NPR.Remaining Charges Against Officers In Freddie Gray's Death Droppedhttp://whqr.org/post/remaining-charges-against-officers-freddie-grays-death-dropped
98613 as http://whqr.orgWed, 27 Jul 2016 20:07:00 +0000Remaining Charges Against Officers In Freddie Gray's Death DroppedJennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit MONTAGNE, HOST: In a surprise move, Baltimore prosecutors have dropped all charges against three officers who still face trial in the death of Freddie Gray. The death of that young black man last year touched off protests that turned violent. State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby had been lauded by some for swiftly charging six officers, but the case has been an uphill battle from the start. NPR's Jennifer Ludden is here with us to talk more about this, and, you know, pretty stunning since there was a courtroom full of people in Baltimore expecting a hearing in the trial of one of these officers. JENNIFER LUDDEN, BYLINE: Yes, Renee, the fifth hearing in this long case, and, you know, people have been calling on Marilyn Mosby to drop these charges for a while. But everyone just assumed, well, she's not going to do that. It's just going to continue on. And yet prosecutors made this motion at the very last minute. You know, there were two more officersCharges Against Remaining Officers Dropped In Freddie Gray Casehttp://whqr.org/post/charges-against-remaining-officers-dropped-freddie-gray-case
98595 as http://whqr.orgWed, 27 Jul 2016 15:41:00 +0000Charges Against Remaining Officers Dropped In Freddie Gray CaseJennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Dallas Chief David Brown Led Efforts To Improve Policinghttp://whqr.org/post/dallas-chief-david-brown-led-efforts-improve-policing
97374 as http://whqr.orgFri, 08 Jul 2016 20:36:00 +0000Dallas Chief David Brown Led Efforts To Improve PolicingCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit NPR.Abortion-Rights Supporters, Opponents Plan Next Stepshttp://whqr.org/post/abortion-rights-supporters-opponents-plan-next-steps
97037 as http://whqr.orgSat, 02 Jul 2016 21:07:00 +0000Abortion-Rights Supporters, Opponents Plan Next StepsJennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Officer's Acquittal Renews Calls For Baltimore Police Reformhttp://whqr.org/post/officers-acquittal-renews-calls-baltimore-police-reform
96980 as http://whqr.orgFri, 01 Jul 2016 20:38:00 +0000Officer's Acquittal Renews Calls For Baltimore Police ReformJennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Supreme Court Texas Abortion Ruling Threatens Other State Lawshttp://whqr.org/post/supreme-court-texas-abortion-ruling-threatens-other-state-laws
96709 as http://whqr.orgMon, 27 Jun 2016 20:28:00 +0000Supreme Court Texas Abortion Ruling Threatens Other State LawsJennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.2nd Acquittal In Freddie Gray Case Is A Blow To Baltimore Prosecutorshttp://whqr.org/post/2nd-acquittal-freddie-gray-case-blow-baltimore-prosecutors
96531 as http://whqr.orgFri, 24 Jun 2016 09:35:00 +00002nd Acquittal In Freddie Gray Case Is A Blow To Baltimore ProsecutorsJennifer LuddenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Baltimore Police Officer Found Not Guilty In Death Of Freddie Grayhttp://whqr.org/post/baltimore-police-officer-found-not-guilty-death-freddie-gray
96500 as http://whqr.orgThu, 23 Jun 2016 20:55:00 +0000Baltimore Police Officer Found Not Guilty In Death Of Freddie Gray